The Galileo Trial is a very strange event at UC Davis. Every year in Professor Stuart's History 4B, a bunch of students dress up as whatever historical figure they might be and they argue for or against Galileo, and whether or not he should be condemned as a heretic (which he actually was) by the Inquisition. The Galileo trial, however serious the subject matter really was, is really quite silly at UCD. In fact, it gets so out of hand that you start to wonder whether or not things in the room (this Spring 05 quarter in 2 Wellman) will get broken or someone will get injured (see the guy in the dress below). It's all in good fun though, and it is a nice, light-hearted break away from the typical lecture. Professor Stuart really seems to love it too, so that makes it better. It has some educational value to it, but in the end, no one really cares for that. Everyone just likes the candy they get from the Medici (who are trying to bribe them into voting pro-Galileo) and they also enjoy watching everyone act out their parts (many of the actors went to some extremes this time around). Here are some pictures from the Spring 2005 trial (in them are popes, posessed people, monks using whips on others, some ancient greek philosophers, and of course, jesus freaks - i.e. Preachers with Signs).
Note: all the pictures were taken from the student presentations section of the History Department's 4b website. All of these pictures were taken by Professor Stuart.
